Indo-Aryan words in Hurrian

[rohan.oberoi at CORNELL.EDU]

Subrahmanya wrote:
>>From: Michael Witzel <witzel at FAS.HARVARD.EDU>
[...]
>>This is an old canard, perpetuated by SS Misra (Aryan Problem 1992) and
>>Norman (1995, Erdosy's Indo_Aryan vol.)
>>
>This use of the word canard is hardly scholarly and would like to
>remind you that Dr.Wujastyk had mentioned that etiquette must be
>maintained.

The word "canard" in English denotes an obvious falsehood.  Its use by
scholars, whose profession is the sifting of truth from falsehood, is
therefore perfectly appropriate.

To illustrate by example: J.B. Russell, professor of history and
religious studies at UCSB, reviewing "The Origin of Satan", by
E. Pagels, professor of religion at Princeton (Random House, 1995)
writes:

"Pagels' long discussion of the career of Origen, which includes the
old canard about Origen's self-castration, has little point till she
addresses his efforts to refute the pagan writer Celsus."

On the other hand, offensively self-righteous and bumptious ignorance
really is unscholarly, and I would caution Mr. Subrahmanya against
indulging it here.

Regards,
Rohan.